Those That Serve
by Bagpipes5K2
Summary: Even the strongest will has a breaking point, and Ignis is no exception. A different take on the scene in Cartanica. **Spoilers for Chapters 9 and 10**


**Those that Serve: A FFXV Story by Bagpipes5K2**

 **Disclaimer: Final Fantasy belongs to SquareEnix, not me.**

 **Special thanks to UnsteadyGenius and Ariana Wells (my offsite reader) for being my beta readers!**

Slogging through the muddy, swampy landscape of the Cartanica mine, Noctis was relieved when he caught the shape of a haven through the nearby trees. He could barely restrain himself from simply warping to the campsite and falling asleep on the bare rock, tent and sleeping bag be damned. What should've been an hour or so trek had taken at least twice that long due to Ignis' blindness and all of them were worn out to the point of just collapsing where they stood. Finally reaching the haven, the group began setting up for the night. Prompto helped Ignis to one of the folding chairs as Noctis magically ignited the campfire with a casual flick of his fingers.

"Need anything, Iggy?"

"I'm fine, Prom, thanks."

"We've, um, got some of Gladio's noodles for dinner. . ."

"Good enough." Ignis stared in the direction of the now blazing fire, hands gripping the chair arms somewhat tighter than necessary. Normally _he'd_ be busy preparing dinner: fresh vegetables, cuts of meat on warm bread. He'd even prep greens for the chocobos. But now? Ignis sighed and felt the pit of molten glass in his stomach sink even farther.

 _What good can I possibly be to Noctis this way_? _Everything I had planned for after we eventually return to Insomnia. . .it might as well be a bloody joke. What am I going to do with my life now_? Ignis heard Prompto rummaging around by the camp stove, getting the noodle cups ready to heat. It didn't take long before a warm mug of pasta with chunks of behemoth meat mixed in was soon in his hands.

Noctis plopped heavily into a chair across the fire from Ignis, setting his noodles on the ground before pulling the Ring of the Lucii from a pocket. Rolling it slowly in one palm the prince watched the diamond at the center catch orange and yellow reflections off the campfire flames. Noct closed his eyes, fighting the tight sensation in his throat and stinging at the corners of his eyes.

 _It wasn't supposed to be like this_ , Noctis thought. Barely three weeks before, their party had been in the city of Altissia. It had been a visual feast: the city was built among canals and lakes, surrounded by terraces of waterfalls that shone with every sunrise. Noctis had met with the city's First Secretary and successfully secured her assistance with paving the way to Leviathan, the sea dragon goddess. All they'd have to do was wait until the appointed time. Noct would seal the covenant with Leviathan, marry Lunafreya, then return home to the citadel in Insomnia with his bride. Gladiolus, Ignis, and Prompto would remain as well in their ongoing roles as Crownsguard elite to Noctis as king.

And it had all gone so horribly, terribly wrong. Noctis' father had been killed, Insomnia destroyed by the Niflheim empire, the crystal that powered the city's magical defenses stolen, Luna murdered. . . and if that hadn't all been enough, due to the Empire showing up during Altissia's city-wide evacuation in hopes of slaying Leviathan—Niflheim's rulers had no love for gods that were destined to help the kings of Lucis, their old enemy—Ignis had been blinded. He would never be able to drive the Regalia again or perform the stunning battle maneuvers that had gotten them through so many confrontations. Noctis closed his hand back over the ring, still unable to wear it—the memories of Altissia were still gouged too raw in his mind.

 _You're not a king, you're a coward_! Gladiolus' words on the train to Cartania echoed in Noctis' head, their ensuing argument angering even Ignis, and that was saying something.

Gladiolus took the chair near Noct, intending to eat, but when he saw the prince staring into the fire with the ring in one hand rather than on his finger, he got right back up and moved away to the other side of the haven, near the tent where he sat with his back to the group and a stony set to his face. Catching the whole scene without taking his eyes from the fire, Noctis made a face at his bodyguard's back and shoved the ring back into his pocket. Picking up his noodles, Noct took a few bites, abruptly decided he wasn't hungry, and put the food back down. Sighing, the prince headed into the tent to sleep. Gladiolus glanced up and saw his charge disappear behind canvas.

Finishing his own noodles, Gladio took the empty container back to the camp stove and started cleaning up what dishes were already sitting around. Prompto ate his food and looked up at his friend.

"He just needs more time, Gladdy."

"And that's the problem, kid. We don't _have_ time. We ran out of time as soon as the damn Niffs stole the crystal and sacked Insomnia over a month ago." Gladiolus' voice was flat as he tidied up around the stove and folding countertop. "Noct needs to start acting like Noctis and not Noct _ass_."

Ignis looked over in the direction of Gladiolus' voice at that, setting his empty cup down with a solid _thunk_. _Enough_. He picked up the cane leaning against his chair.

"That was crossing way over the line, Gladio. Noct is our king and deserves respect regardless of how angry we may get with him at times." Ignis stood up, grateful that Noctis had given him the chair closest to the tent and made sure the short way to it was clear of any obstacles. Moving slowly just in case, Ignis disappeared into the tent.

At the other side of the camp Prompto had his phone on and was trying very hard to act absorbed in a game of King's Knight.

Gladio sighed and ran a hand through his dark hair. _Shit_. "I'm going to bed," he muttered. "Douse the fire before you turn in, Prom."

"Will do," the other said, not bothering to look up from his game. He did so only after Gladiolus had gone into the tent. Prompto dropped the phone into his lap, feeling forlorn. _What's happening to us_?

Late in the quiet, somnophoric night (or very early morning, depending on who you asked) Gladiolus felt something tugging at his foot, gently at first, then insisting. The tugging stopped and turned into poking at his side. "Gladio? You awake?" A voice trying to be quiet and not quite succeeding.

 _Prompto_. Gladiolus growled something under his breath, stretching and rolling over in his sleeping bag like a hibernating bear. "This better be good, Prom. Can't be more than four in the morning—"

"Iggy's gone!" Prompto's face was a study in fear. Gladio froze.

"What do you mean, 'gone'?"

"I got up for some leftovers and when he wasn't in here I thought he'd gone outside to be alone or something but he's not here and he left his phone behind and I even checked around the haven in case he slipped and—and fell off the side, or—"

"I get it." Gladiolus reached over and gave Noctis a rough shake on the shoulder. "Noct, wake up. Now."

"Hrmhrif?" The prince turned to face his friends, barely awake. "The hell's goin' on?"

"Ignis left the camp."

Blue-gray eyes snapped open wide and Noct felt ice gut his stomach. " _What_? Why?"

"I don't know," Gladio said, "but we need to find him before something really bad happens."

* * *

Bleary light had barely started piercing the morning sky, but the three friends were already on the move through the swampy landscape. Abandoned decades ago after its resources were exhausted, Cartanica's Fodina Caestino mine had been left to nature and the local wildlife. Massive mining equipment still stood as it had for years, rusting and rotting among a profusion of large trees and rocky outcroppings. Being a strip mine rather than underground, the swamp had overtaken what was left, brackish water quickly filling any holes and hiding them from view. Root systems of the trees made a matted maze both above and beneath the water. Then there were the monsters that inhabited the area, reptilian gurangatches with venomous jaws large enough to snap a man in half, the hyena-like falxfangs that would attack in packs to bring down prey—including people—and worst of all, malboros. Large enough to swallow several people at once, the living plants could spew a toxic fog at their victims that would incapacitate someone long enough for the creature to happily enclose its enormous jaws around anything in the path of the putrid breath weapon.

Noctis' mind kept playing out terrible scenarios with Ignis the longer they searched for him. Tree roots could twist an ankle, the falxfangs could ambush, the gurangatches could bite and all it would take was one small wound deep enough and in a matter of hours it would become infected. Ignis would have no way to call for help. Gladiolus led their search, greatsword over one shoulder, his skill at tracking and noticing the smallest thing amiss on full alert. Prompto was next, pistols set if anything burst out of the trees or water. Last was Noctis, sword in one hand and a fire spell on deck in the other.

 _Please be okay_ , _please be okay_. . . The prince's imagination continued to generate horror stories in his head, so much so that he bumped into Prompto without realizing where he was going.

"Dude! Watch your blade!"

"Sorry." Noctis stopped, looking down at the muddy slop beneath his feet. _I never even said anything to Ignis before storming off to bed last night_. _What if I never get another chance again_?

"Noct?" Prompto's bright blue eyes met his. "It's fine, no harm done." Noctis looked out at the unending miasma of green and brown surrounding them all, stumbling back into a tree.

"This whole mess is my fault. If I hadn't been so drained after fighting Leviathan I could've stopped Ardyn, saved Luna, and met up with you guys before the empire overran everything. Iggy wouldn't be blind and. . ."

"Snap out of it, Noct," Gladio said as he came up to them. "Regain your focus. Ignis needs us, all of us. Clear your head and get back in the fight." There was no anger in the shield's voice now, just determination. His amber eyes held onto Noct's blue ones. "You good?" Noctis nodded.

"Then let's go. We're wasting daylight." Gladiolus took the lead again and they continued on through what amounted to a muggy, humid jungle. Noctis couldn't help but feel impressed that Ignis had even made it this far from the camp but the farther away they walked the more worried he got. Being caught outside during nighttime in this place wouldn't be helping any of them and would make finding Ignis nearly impossible. Fortunately it was still early morning but who knew how long it would take to locate their friend? _If_ they located him. Noctis shoved that thought away. He'd stay out here as long as it took, period. And as if reading his thoughts, Gladio raised a hand to signal a stop. The one sign he'd been hoping not to find was splattered over the ground cover in front of them. Blood. He pointed it out to his companions and Prompto could only make a small sound of distress.

"No. . ."

"We don't know if it's Iggy's. It could very well be a beast of some kind," Gladiolus said. Seconds later he was nodding. "Over there." The trio pushed through the gory leaves to find the bodies of three falxfangs. They had deep cuts through the midsection that had definitely come from a blade.

"We have to be close," Noctis said. "We have to be."

"If Ignis was the one who did this," Gladio said, immediately regretting it when he saw the look on Noctis' face. They hadn't considered the fact other people could be out here as well as the wildlife, although the chances were almost nonexistent. The haven had shown no signs of recent use and both the provisions store and weapons seller back at the train station had confirmed that very few humans bothered with the mine anymore since its closure. Monsters, however, were a constant threat.

A loud splash startled the group and Noctis felt his armiger ability buzzing through his blood, ready for use. Another splash up ahead, joined by low, guttural reptilian sounds that reverberated through the heavy air. Bursting through the tangle of shrubs and vines in front of them, the trio looked out to see the swamp below, roiling with at least six gurangatches. The animals were encircling a large hollow tree, and inside the hollow—

" _Ignis_!" Noct defused his fire spell and dismissed his sword in a sparkle of glittering blue light. In their place he summoned his own greatsword. Pushing past Gladio he began scouring the scene, trying to target the gurangatch that was closest to the tree. Already knowing what Noctis was about to do Gladio reached out to grab the prince—who vanished in an afterglow of blue light as he warped down into the mess below.

"Dammit, Noct!" Gladiolus gestured to Prompto. "Come on!"

* * *

Just before reaching the first beast Noctis called on his armiger, and there was a bright flash of blue-white energy as his ancestral weaponry—those he had found so far—formed around him in a halo. Linked with those powerful tools, Noctis became a living force, movements sped up inhumanly fast, vaulting from one gurangatch to another, weakening their defenses, cracking bones. Distracting them away from Ignis. Within barely a minute, though, the armiger expired, going dormant once again to build up to another bout. But the job had gotten done: only two of the beasts remained in fighting shape, and as Noct backflipped back into the swampy ground he summoned his greatsword again as the armiger blinked out of existence. His friends had reached the edge of the fray.

"Gladio, Prom, finish 'em off!" Noctis swung his blade, Gladiolus joining in with his own greatsword while Prompto fired off expert shots from a distance, slowly closing in. The trio took out the remaining creatures swiftly, the swamp going quiet again as the last shot Prompto got off echoed through the trees. Gladiolus immediately went over to their wayward companion, relieved to see Ignis alive, then angry that they'd all been left to worry over their friend.

"What the _hell's_ going on, Ig?"

Noctis and Prompto dismissed their weaponry and came up to sit on the large sprawling roots of the tree that surrounded the hollow center. Ignis was partly shadowed by the rotting walls of the tree trunk so it was hard to get a good look at him but he appeared uninjured, although muddy. His gaze turned up towards Gladio's voice from behind darkened glasses.

"What's 'going on' is that I had to get away from camp because the three men I consider dear friends and love like brothers have been bickering and harping at each other like adolescent schoolboys for days now—particularly you and Noct—and I can _not_ stand it any longer and pretend nothing is happening," Ignis snapped. Gladio started to respond, but stopped and stared at the ground. Noctis and Prompto were doing the same, none of them able to look at each other. "Ever since we left Altissia everything between us has been horrible. I can't change what happened: the battle with the empire, losing Luna, losing my sight. . .over the past couple days I've realized that whatever's happened to my vision is probably permanent and that this is how I'll be spending the rest of my life. But regardless, I want to stay with you all until this is finished."

Noctis saw a flash of sadness cross Gladio's face for a hesitant instant.

"Ignis, we're in a war. The biggest war Lucis has ever been involved in. As Crownsguard we're here to protect Noct. If we can't do that. . ."

"If I can't keep up with you, if I can't find a way to hold my own in battle. . .then I'll bow out." Ignis' voice broke a little at that and Noctis felt sick at seeing his friend so lost.

"No. No way. We can watch out for you, Iggy." Prompto stood, staring defiantly at Gladiolus. "It should be his choice to stay or not."

"You're our king, Noct. The decision is ultimately yours," Ignis said quietly. "As for when he'll wear the ring"—he looked pointedly in Gladio's direction—"Noctis will do so and take his place when he's ready."

Gladiolus saw his three friends all staring at him. He sighed, knowing when he'd lost a fight. "Fine, whatever it takes to get things moving again. But when the rest of the empire's shit hits the fan—and it will— _all_ of us had better be ready for it. No matter what."

Noctis nodded. "Ignis stays with us." His advisor flashed a look of gratitude at this, and the dark tension among them all finally lessened to a more manageable level.

"So those dead falxfangs up the way," Gladio said. "Your handiwork?" He gave Ignis a light swat on the shoulder.

"Indeed. Though not without a few sacrifices to my clothing." Ignis gestured at the sticky mud stains on him.

"There's still something I can't figure out," Noctis said. "If you wanted time alone one of us could've helped you to a spot near the haven. Why the hell did you drag yourself all the way out here, Ignis? You could've gotten killed!"

"And you _are_ injured." Gladio took Ignis' left arm in his hand, moving it so the sunlight favored it. The sleeve on the shirt was sliced along his lower arm and blood splotches stained the fabric and covered his skin, particularly near his wrist. Ignis suddenly shrank down into the hollow, avoiding everyone's gaze and trying to pull away from Gladiolus.

 _Please don't, Gladio. Leave it be_.

"This is from a _blade_ not animal teeth," Gladio muttered. Confused, he checked Ignis for any further injuries and saw one of his friend's daggers sitting within reach, the weapon smudged with crimson. "What happened?"

Realization hit Noctis like an iron giant's fist to the stomach and he was glad he was already sitting down. Prompto came to the same conclusion seconds later.

"You. . .you didn't do that to yourself, did you Iggy? Please say you didn't." The blonde sharpshooter felt his eyes welling over. Ignis remained silent, burying his face in his hands.

"What? Ignis? You _wanted_ those things to attack you? But. . . _why_?" Gladio looked like a child who had just lost a beloved pet. Noctis leaned over, elbows on knees as he clutched at his hair and shook his head. Things were so, so messed up. Ignis had been hurting far more than any of them had realized, and between grieving and being hounded by the empire Noct hadn't even noticed. None of them had. Their maimed friend had kept holding things together despite it all and now things had finally snapped into a million tiny pieces.

 _A real king would've noticed a situation like this_. _Is this what that screwed-up dream was trying to tell me back in Lestallum_? _That everything really is going to fall apart and nothing I do can fix it_? _Maybe Gladio was right about me after all_. . . Noct looked at each of his companions, at a loss. Guilt and shame clawed at his chest. _I'm so, so sorry Iggy_. . .

Ignis raised his head, tears streaming down his face.

"I can't see the sunrise anymore. Or the sunset. The stars at dusk—remember that beautiful night in Duscae, Noct? Or that amazing photo Prompto took of the Disc just before evening fell back when we first came to Lestallum?"

Noctis felt shock run through him straight to the core. As long as he'd known Ignis, he'd never, ever seen him cry. Not once. Not even when he'd fractured an arm years ago when Noct had still been a kid. It was harrowing and heartbreaking. Prompto had his digital camera out, looking at the picture in question and fighting a losing battle with his own sorrow at Ignis' words.

"I swore an oath to the Crownsguard," Ignis continued in a quavering voice. "To protect our king and serve his kingdom. And now I can no longer even defend a bloody _rock_ let alone a prince. And cooking? How? Making camp and eating with you all was one of the highlights of the trip for me. There's. . .there's _nothing_ _left_! Even the Regalia has been taken from me!" Crumpling against the hollow Ignis shook, tears magnifying into anguished sobbing. Noctis managed to get his own tears controlled enough to close the distance to Ignis and wrapped his friend in a close hug. Ignis had never been one to hug often, if at all, but this was one of the times Noct knew he needed it.

"I swear, Iggy, after all this is done I'll find a way to get your sight back no matter how long it takes. There has to be something that can help, I know there is." Noctis felt hard knots of rage inside himself, furious that the empire had caused so much suffering to people he cared about so deeply.

"Blades of the Six, Ignis." Gladiolus sat down on the tree root Noctis had vacated. "We didn't come this far on this trip to let you give up now. We're here for you. And I for one won't let you give in to this." He brushed at some ants crawling along the tree. "Do you know where I was back when I left you guys for a few days after we took Iris to Caem? Facing Gilgamesh. Why? Because I knew I needed more power to help Noct take back Insomnia. Even though I knew losing to Gilgamesh would mean my death, the point is I didn't give up, even when I felt like it. I knew I could do it. . .because I had all of you to come back to."

"And if you had lost, and Gilgamesh had let you come back anyway instead of taking your life, leaving you maimed and injured. . .would you still have returned?" Ignis futilely tried to stop crying, clinging to Noctis as though his life depended on it.

"Hell yes," Gladiolus murmured. "Even if I had to crawl my way back to Caem."

Noct kept Ignis in his embrace until the older man's grief burned itself out. The prince gently pulled away from his friend but kept a hand on the other's shoulder.

"Okay now?"

"I will be. Eventually." Ignis took a deep breath, weary from his unexpected emotional outpouring. Gladio once again took his friend's arm in hand and brought out the first aid kit he'd brought with them.

"There's better items back at camp to patch this up with but for now this will do. Can't have you getting an infection in this hellhole." Gladiolus went to work cleaning and bandaging Ignis' injury. Noctis moved away from his advisor so Gladio could tend to him, giving Ignis a light squeeze on the shoulder before sitting back down to carefully produce some fire magic in three of the special round flasks he kept. Once the flasks were full he placed them in Ignis' free hand.

"I don't want you in the center of every battle we're in, but with these you can still be one hell of a backup fighter. Three fire spells," Noctis said. Ignis nodded.

"Thank you Noct. And not just for the spells."

"Anytime."

Gladio finished securing gauze around Ignis' arm. "Good to go. Just keep it dry."

"What now?" Prompto stood up, brushing the back of a hand across his eyes.

"Now we have a royal arm to find," Gladiolus said. "You up for it, Ignis?

"Yes." Ignis stood as well with Gladio's help and was abruptly caught in a hug from the larger man.

"You're our shield brother, Iggy. Promise us you won't do something this boneheaded again." Gladio released his friend.

"Yes, mum." The faintest hint of a smile pulled at Ignis' lips, but he was serious.

"Hey, my turn!" Prompto hugged Ignis next, careful of the other's injury.

"Stay with us, Ignis. Don't make us cry like this again."

"Rest assured I'm not going anywhere, Prom."

Prompto handed Ignis his forgotten cane as the group made to head out into the swamp, and Noctis felt the last of the melancholy that had smothered them leave. Still not an ideal situation, but at least they were beginning to feel like a family again.

* * *

Evening sun was shading into golden ruby shot through with indigo by the time the group returned to their campsite. Not long after reuniting with Ignis and heading further into the swamp they had indeed found the hidden royal tomb—complete with a malboro nesting nearby. The unavoidable battle with the creature had been rough, and would probably have incapacitated another member of their band if it hadn't been for Ignis' quick thinking. Feeling the beast's vacuum-like intake of breath in preparation for spewing its foul fog weapon he'd timed a throw with one of the magic flasks perfectly, and once inhaled the fire magic did its work. The malboro exploded, showering the area with bits of what smelled like burnt broccoli. But the group had been spared a longer, drawn-out mess of a fight. Gladio had given Ignis a hearty smack on his back.

"They didn't call this guy "Scientia the Firemind" back in school for nothing. Pun not intended," Gladio said, grinning for the first time in days. Ignis felt a fierce burst of satisfaction at both the praise and outcome of the battle. He'd managed to help his friends without getting in the way or causing them further worry, a clear contrast to when they'd first come to Cartanica and despite his best intentions the others had had to defend him just as much as each other.

 _One battle down, but the war goes on_. Ignis settled into his camp chair, content to let the others deal with dinner. His spur of the moment trek into the swamp and emotional breakdown had drained him of energy for the day and resting sounded quite pleasant. Gladiolus had redone the first aid on his arm with a proper bandage this time while his other two companions prepared dinner. Prompto had even given up his chair so that Ignis could stretch out his legs and cover up with a blanket near the fire.

Seeing that their resident photographer had things under control at the cookstove, Noctis summoned his fishing rod and dug out lures from his box in the tent.

"I'll be down the rise," he called out, hopping down from the haven and heading out. A small offshoot pool of the swamp was nearby and Noct had seen fish in it earlier. Finding a good spot near the water's edge, the prince set a lure on the hook, swung the rod just so and the lure plopped into the marshy water. Several interested ripples stirred around the line as fish checked out the bait. Used to waiting with his favorite hobby, Noctis settled onto a rock, turning on the camp lantern he'd brought with him as true night began with the last of the evening sunlight fading.

Scuffling, solid footsteps behind him alerted Noct to Gladio's presence but he kept his eyes on the line, shifting the rod now and then.

"No bites?" The prince's shield sat down next to the rock Noctis was perched on.

"Close but nope."

Gladiolus looked out at the moonlit water. "About what you told Ignis. . .healing his eyes? I don't want to see any hope he may have buried somewhere torn to pieces, Noct. He's already been through enough. We had some of the best doctors helping him back in Altissia and they weren't too optimistic."

Noctis made a derisive sound. "We have a world full of magitek, magic, the powers of the crystal, the Astrals, and even the Ring of Lucii, and nobody can figure out a way to heal Ignis? Total bullshit." Noct held onto the rod a little tighter as a tug came through on the line. "I'd poke one of my own eyes out with my daggers if it meant giving Iggy his sight back."

"And I feel the same but. . .how can you be that certain?"

"Easy. All of those doctors that couldn't offer any alternatives? They're not me. They don't have a link to the crystal and raw magic. And I don't make promises I can't make good on."

Gladio could only hope the prince could be proven right someday.

"So. . .the real reason I came out here." Gladiolus sighed to himself. "About the way things have been since we left Altissia. . ."

"Shoot." Noctis kept his eyes on the water.

"After Ignis got hurt, and you were almost killed. . .I finally realized that nothing was going to be the same, no matter how much I wanted it to be. I thought that. . .that if you could wear the ring of Lucii it would shake you out of the hopelessness I saw you sinking into, give you something to ground yourself with. Something in me just broke after seeing what happened to Iggy. I should've been able to keep him out of harm's way during the fighting and I failed. . .I didn't want to lose you too. I guess I just took things way too far and I'm sorry."

"Did you apologize to Prompto for shoving him in the face the other day on the train?"

"Already done."

"Then apology accepted." Noct turned from the water to face his shieldmate and offered a hand. Gladiolus took it in one of his own, the two sharing a warrior's grip and the prince finally felt the remnants of stress and anger leave. Before either of them could speak Noctis' fishing pole was roughly yanked nearly out of his hand and he spun around, grabbing it with both hands as Gladio caught him by the jacket collar before he could fall into the water.

"How big _is_ this thing?!" Gladiolus steadied Noctis with an arm around the waist as the prince regained his footing.

"Oooh yeah. Not letting it get away!" Pulling back on the pole Noct saw a large fish thrash out of the water for an instant before reeling it in closer. Before the fish could make another surge for the water Gladio and Noctis both pulled back on the rod and hauled in the animal. Golden scales flared in the moonlight as Noctis held up his prize.

"Looks like second course for dinner to me!"

The two friends headed back to camp, Glaido's arm around Noctis' shoulders.

* * *

Back at the haven Prompto was deep in conversation with Ignis, a battered tablet in the older man's hands as Prompto was explaining something with his usual vigor restored.

"—and I figured, so what if the screen is cracked a little? All you need is the audio. I downloaded your favorite audiobooks and some music too. Just talk to it—let it know what you want to listen to and you're set!"

"Prompto Argentum, you are a genius." Ignis placed his new treasure in his lap as the younger man felt himself turning a shade of pink from the compliment. He was glad that his innate ability with machinery and electronics could be put to uses other than weaponry now and then, especially if it helped his friends.

"Hope you're all still hungry!" Noctis held up his fish as he and Gladio reached the fire.

"Look at the size of it! Lemme get a pic!" Prompto had his camera out in seconds as Noct struck a pose with his catch. "Iggy, check this out!" Prompto pulled Noctis over so Ignis could feel the fish for himself.

"An impressive specimen, Highness. I recommend serving it with Duscaen oranges and a vesproom sauce."

"That would be great. . .if I knew how to make all of that." Noct looked sheepishly at the fish as he transferred it to a plate by the stove and dismissed his fishing rod. Ignis began to say something, then stopped with a crestfallen look over at the camp stove.

"We still can." Prompto stowed his camera and put a hand on Ignis' arm. "Come on, Iggy."

"Where are we going?"

"The stove."

"But. . ."

"No 'buts'. You tell us what to do and we'll help you do it." Prompto linked his arm with Ignis and guided him to the camp stove where Noctis was preparing the fish for cooking. The prince looked up at his advisor.

"You can do it, Specs."

Ignis hesitated for a minute, then nodded.

"Right. Here's what we need. . ."

* * *

Later that evening the four comrades sat around the fire with empty plates and full stomachs.

"Delicious as always, Iggy." Gladio settled into his chair with a contented sigh.

"Always a pleasure. I hope I can continue to count on my assistant chefs?" A small smile as Ignis looked across the fire where he knew the other two members of their party were enjoying their platters of fish.

"Just say the word," Noctis said. "But not at the crack of dawn," he added wryly.

"I think we can arrange that." Ignis felt the warmth of the fire and filling dinner pulling him towards sleep, and Noctis draped one of the camp blankets over him. Prompto and Gladio began a fierce bout of King's Knight, soon joined by Noctis, and before long the three friends were ribbing each other and laughing. For one night, at least, the prince and his companions could forget the desperate journey they were on and enjoy life. Ignis fell asleep to the sound of laughter and crackling flames from the campfire, and in his dreams he could see the stars again.

~~~~XV~~~~


End file.
